Farm Girl
You crouch down in front of Bessie, your family's cow. She gave birth two nights ago, and hasn't been herself since. You glance over at her calf, who is lying nearby. Your little brother, Luka, is sitting beside it watching it with interest. He's only seven, but he's already constantly curious about the world. "Why did Milker have a boy calf?" he asks you now. "Did she know that boys are the best?" You roll your eyes, focusing on the black and white spotted cow again. Her big brown eyes are dull and lifeless, and her head is lowered miserably. "Well?" Luka asks impatiently, patting the calf on the head. "No, of course not!" you say. "It was just a coincidence." Luka doesn't look convinced. "I bet Newbie's glad he's a boy," he mutters. The new calf hasn't been named yet. Your litte sister, Lulu, who's only three, wants to call the calf Moo-Moo, but you refuse to agree to that. You like to name the farm animals. You named Bessie when your family bought her three years ago. "Let's go inside, Sissy," Luka says, tugging at your jumper. "In a minute, Lukie," you tell him, peering at Bessie again. "We need to find out what's wrong with her." "Daddy will fetch the doctor. He'll know," Luka says confidently. "Come on Sissy," he adds, yanking harder to make you follow him. "Mummy says not to forget how early you have to be up tomorrow! You have to go hunting, remember?" "Because Father is fetching the vet," you remember gloomily. "Alright Luka, I'm coming now, see?" You stand up, dust your hands down on your trousers, and follow your small brother out of the barn and into the house. It's warm in there, with the lamps all lit, and candles swinging from the wall brackets. Your mother is setting the table, Lulu clinging to her skirt and swaying back and forth with her movement. "Go and wash your hands before dinner," your mother instructs, looking up. "I want you in pyjamas Lukie." She looks at you. "And you in clean clothes." "Alright," you agree and thud up the stairs, followed by your brother. Little Lulu toddles to the foot of the stairs and yells up after you. "Don thum! Don thum!" "The baby knows it better than they do," you hear your mother grumble, while you and Luka fight over who gets the bathroom sink first. You win, rinse your hands quickly, dry them on Luka's shirt, while he complains loudly, and hurry into the bedroom the two of you share. After pulling on clean trousers, you open the door to let your brother in to change, and you head back downstairs. Sharing a room with Luka is tough. He barges in all the time, since the door doesn't lock, and you've taken to standing behind the door when you get dressed. Your parents even say that it's time for Lulu to share the room as well, which you think would be a complete disaster. Lulu's adorable, but she's very loud at four o'clock in the morning. Dinner is good, with roast chicken and potatoes. You're glad your father killed a wild chicken instead of one of your farm ones. You and your brother and sister knowthem all by name.After dinner, you and your brother both go upstairs again, and you change into your pyjamas while Luka washes his teeth. Finally, you fall into your bed, exhausted as always by the long chores and handiwork that always need doing, and are asleep within minutes. Tomorrow your hunt begins. Click here to continue your journey.